Newborn found inside abandoned furniture drawer in Chicago alley
The infant was alive when paramedics arrived
Anewborn baby boy was found inside the drawer of an abandoned dresser in a Chicago alley Tuesday. A woman who was looking for recyclable materials near trash cans discovered the baby. The infant is in good health condition, Chicago Police said.
Paramedics were called to the 2300 block of North Oak Park Avenue in the Montclare neighborhood by the woman who located the baby, Chicago Tribune reported.
Fortunately, the infant was located before the garbage trucks arrived, the report said. The woman said she held the baby until the paramedics arrived and that the infant was alive when they got there.
According to Larry Langford, a spokesman for the Chicago Fire Department, the baby was admitted to Lurie Children's Hospital and is in good condition. "It's a good thing somebody came by. It's hot out there, it could've ended differently. But it's all seemingly worked out," Langford told the news outlet.
He added that though the baby's age isn't ascertained, he is "considered a newborn."
Though trash collection was happening in the area around the same time, it is not clear whether the drawer was near the trash bins placed for pick up.
The fire department alerted police, who arrived at the location to investigate. No additional details are available as the investigation has just begun, police said. The officers also did not clarify whether they were looking for the mother.
Meanwhile, the woman who discovered the infant called the discovery a miracle. "I put my finger on the little foot, too just to see he was moving," she told NBC Chicago.
"I found him that is the greatest thing. Every time I think about the little details, it just makes me mad. So I'm just gonna focus on the miracle that I was there, and that everybody showed up on time because I was shaking. I was shaking so bad," she added.
As per the Safe Haven law enacted in 2001 in Illinois, a parent can safely relinquish an infant 30 days old or younger to a hospital, police station, fire station, or emergency medical facility and leave the infant with personnel of the facility without fear of legal repercussions. If authorities determine the baby was in danger, the person could face an arrest.
This article is copyrighted by International Business Times, the business news leader